Desperate Pleas and Blessings: How Repeated Leaks Are Undermining Maharashtra’s PAT Exams

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Just hours before the Periodic Assessment Test (PAT) commenced across Maharashtra, the Class 8 English paper became one of three papers leaked on YouTube. One particular channel hosting the leaked video garnered over 100,000 views, with users flooding the comments—some desperately pleading and begging for Marathi language and Maths papers before their exams.

Later, many left messages thanking and even “blessing” the channel for sharing the papers. Unfortunately, this was not an isolated case.Pune police are currently probing three consecutive leaks reported in April, August, and earlier this month, where multiple PAT papers surfaced on YouTube, each attracting more than a lakh views. The Indian Express accessed the three FIRs filed in connection with these incidents. In the April 8 PAT session, Marathi, Maths, and Third Language English papers were leaked on at least 20 YouTube channels the day before, complete with answers. Some of these videos remain accessible even now.

Similarly, for the August 6 exams, Marathi language papers for Class 7 and Maths papers for Classes 7 and 8 were leaked along with answers on three YouTube channels. Most recently, for the tests starting October 11, five YouTube channels uploaded three question papers with answers a day before the exam, according to FIRs filed with Vishrambag police by officials from the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), which oversees PAT.

Who Benefits From These Leaks?

The police investigation highlights glaring security lapses in PAT’s administration, but the recurring leaks raise deeper questions. Since 2023, Maharashtra’s PAT operates under the Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) initiative—a Rs 5,718 crore programme funded partly by the World Bank—aimed at identifying learning gaps for students in Classes 3 to 8 by testing primary language, Maths, and English thrice yearly.An insider familiar with the probe pointed out,

“Who do these leaks really help? Unlike SSC or HSC, PAT results don’t impact student promotion directly. The leaks mainly benefit YouTube channels gaining thousands of views, while seriously compromising the assessment’s purpose.

Pinpointing the Leak Proves Challenging

The same officer added, “We have recorded statements from various stakeholders, but identifying the exact source of leaks in such a vast process is extremely difficult.” With over 80 lakh students tested across grades 3 to 8 in April 2024, the scale of PAT dwarfs Maharashtra’s Class 10 board exam (SSC), which sees around 15 lakh candidates.These repeated, puzzling leaks not only erode the integrity of PAT but also threaten to undermine efforts to improve education quality in Maharashtra.